"32-HOUR WEEK."

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 194, 17 August 1936, Page 9

"32-HOUR WEEK."

WORK OF FIREMEN. ARBITRATION COURT VIEW. REDUCTION NOT PERMITTED. The Arbitration Court has refused applications for the* reduction to 40 a week of the working hours fixed by the [ Christcliurch fire brigadesmen's industrial agreement and the Wellington fire brigade employees' award. The Court held that the actual working hours were already considerably less than 40 a week. ' No application for any variation of the Auckland agreement has been made to date. The Court, in giving judgment, said the application was somewhat unusual. "The first application is to amend the Christchurch fire brigadesmen's agreement by ordering that the hours of work provided in clause 1 of the award should he reduced to 40 a week. The clause in question fixes the combined hours of work and drill during the summer months (October to March inclusive) at f>J hours a day on five days of the week, a total of 28J hours a week, and during the winter months (April to September, inclusive) at 5i hours a day on five days, a total of 27J hours a week. "In addition to these regular hours of daily work and drill conies on occasions the actual work of fire-figliting. This averages less than three hours a week throughout the year, so that the maximum hours worked by brigadesmen are less than 32 a week. Universal System. "The system adopted in the chief cities of New Zealand, and in many other parts of the world, 'is to require the brigadesmen to reside on, or adjacent to, the premises" of the brigade. Suitable living quarters both for married and single brigadesmen are provided. So that the brigadesmen are at once available when an alarm is received, they are not allowed, except on their days off, to leave the brigade premises. Subject to this stipulation, they may, when the day's work is finished, employ their time as they choose. "Provision is made for their recreation on the premises. Each brigadesman is given one full day's holiday of 24 hours in every five days, and on that day is free to go where he pleases, should he, on his holiday, chance to be on the brigade premises when an alarm of fire is given, he is not required to turn out to it. • Each man is given an annual holiday of from 14 to 21 days. "In the Wellington agreement the hours of work and drill are not specified, but the hours actually worked and the conditions of employment appear to be substantially similar to those prevailing in Christchurch. In our opinion the applications must be refused for the reason that such hours are' already considerably less than 40 a week."